Now and Forever
by tigerlilies-and-superheroes
Summary: Ziva has returned home, but she is still in danger. As she struggles to navigate relationships, NCIS and life, Ziva, Tony and the team must stay alive long enough to figure out why she is being hunted- and stop them. Healthy dose of Tiva. Rated T for paranoia. Sequel to You and Me. ON HIATUS!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'm back! This is a direct continuation of Y&M, so you really ought to read it first. I will be updating every couple of days on this one. By my guess, this story will be 30-ish chapters. Now, without further ado, welcome to Now and Forever!**

**Disclaimer: Seriously, I hate these things. But here you go: I do not own this stuff!**

"No! No! Ziva! Please, I'll do anything!" Tony watched helplessly as Ziva screamed. "ZIVA!" he yelled and cried, but he could do nothing but look on as the life slowly drained out of his partner's eyes. He captured her brown eyes with his green ones and held fast. Then something dimmed and vanished in the brown pair. "Ziva!" he sobbed, hanging his head. "Zi…"

In the next room, a woman sat curled up on a couch, reading a book. She heard something in the next room- someone sobbing and saying a name over and over. She eased herself off the couch and hurried into the room.

"Ziva… Ziva," he whispered brokenly. The woman rushed to his side. "Tony?" she shook him gently. "Tony!"

He awoke with a start. "Are you alright Tony?" she asked softly. At her voice, Tony's eyes snapped open.

"Zi?" Tony's voice trembled. His eyes searched hers for any sign of the deadened look that he had seen, and remembered all too vividly.

"Ziva?" he repeated, more strongly.

"Tony? What's wrong? Why were you saying my name?"

"I-I was dreaming. You were dead. My God, Ziva. What's happening to me?"

"I don't know." She sighed and stood up to leave.

"Wait, Ziva… can you stay here?" Tony looked up at her plaintively, like a little kid, and she had to smile.

"Okay."

Ziva slid into Tony's bed beside him and lay on her side facing him. Her thoughts were of a different bed, a different city, and different ghosts haunting them. His eyes said more clearly than words that his mind was turned in a similar direction.

"Thank you, Tony," she murmured.

"What for?" he was honestly confused. _Shouldn't I be thanking _her_?_

"Just, thank you."

He smiled and carefully brushed a lock of dark hair off her face.

"You're welcome."

He wrapped his arms around his ninja, his partner, his _Ziva_ and fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Ok, I lied. This'll be updated like every 3 days or so. Sorry 'bout the wait, I've been crazy bust (school sucks). That's all.**

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah. Rub it in my face. I don't own NCIS.**

Dawn found the two agents sleeping contentedly in Tony's bed.

Ziva was curled up at Tony's side, her head on his shoulder and one resting on his chest, over his heart. For his part, Tony had managed to unconsciously keep both arms around Ziva and had his face buried in her hair. Both faces held small smiles.

Tony's only widened when he awoke. He could count on one hand the number on times he had woken to Ziva David sleeping beside him, and rule 12 be damned, he liked it. He lay back, happy to watch Ziva sleep.

Ziva's eyes opened to Tony holding her in his arms and smiling at her. Not his usual lady-charming, 1,000-watt DiNozzo grin, either. An honest, content smile. She liked it, especially aimed in her direction. Coupled with the way his arms encircled her protectively: Yes. Ziva David was having an excellent morning- not that she would ever admit it to him.

"Hello, Tony." Ziva murmured sleepily.

"Why hello, Miss David. Did you sleep alright?" he replied, affecting a slight Bond accent for the sheer pleasure of seeing her smile.

She complied admirably.

"So, Zi, what exactly did you thank me for last night?" he skipped right to the question at hand. Seeing the look in his eyes, Ziva decided just to tell him.

"For… everything. Michael, Somalia, Jenny, Ray, Eli, Bodnar, Orli. All of it."

"Ziva. I did what any good partner would do."

"No. Not many people would go on a suicide mission to get vengeance for their partner, or accompany them on a journey to avenge the death of a man for whom they held no small amount of dislike."

"I'm not your typical NCIS agent,"

"You're not a typical friend, either." he smiled.

"Ziva, our partnership, our friendship, our whatever the hell this is, is one of the most important things in my life. I don't want to lose it again."

"You will not."

"Promise me you won't do this to me again."

"What?"

"Leave me."

"I promise."

"Good." Tony smiled at her.

"I promise too."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Another chapter for you all! We have snow here, YAY! New NCIS and NCIS New Orleans tonight! Review?**

**Disclaimer: Apparently NCIS is not for sale for substantial amounts of chocolate... so I don't own it :(**

"Director Elbaz. I believe we may have something." Liat announced. "Something on Vance."

Oril motioned her to sit, herself half-rising from her desk. Liat sat carelessly in the hard chair and looked to her superior.

"Excellent work." Orli said with a smile. "What is it?"

"That is the problem. We do not have access to this information." Liat replied slowly.

"Why not?" Orli's voice was steely.

"There was a top-secret CIA operation a number of years ago that Vance was involved in. Our sources report he may have purposely let a terrorist escape. However, the mission remains classified, and we do not have open access."

"Very well. I will stall the United States agencies until our people can find the information." Orli stated.

"Yes director." Liat stood to leave.

"Oh, and Liat?"

"Yes?"  
>"Do not allow the Americans to trace this back to us."<p>

"Of course not, director."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

Washington, DC, 10 hours later

"McGee, where are DiNozzo and David?" Gibbs asked, striding into the bullpen with the ever-present cup of coffee in his hand.

"Umm… still at Tony's place, I think. Why?"

"Just get them in here. Discreetly. Then go down to the lab. Abbs needs your help with some computer virus."

"On it boss."

McGee pulled out his cell and called Tony, then grinned when he heard Ziva's voice on the other end.

"Yes McGee?"  
>"Uh, Gibbs wants you and Tony in here ASAP." Out of pity for his friends (and a certain level of fear for his physical wellbeing) he did not comment on Ziva answering her partner's cell. He simply hung up and was halfway to Abby's lab to inform her of the recent developments when Gibbs walked by and awarded him a headslap and a Caf-Pow! in one fluid motion.<p>

"Thanks boss."

NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS

"Damn it! Get someone down here NOW!" Abby screamed into the phone.

"Abby! What's wrong?" McGee shouted over the Brain Matter blasting from her stereo.

"McGee!" she turned the music down. "I need your help."

"Gibbs said computer virus."

"Not exactly. Someone's trying to hack into the system." Abby explained.

"NCIS?"

"The CIA."

"Orli." Tim muttered and rushed to help. "What can we do?"

"Oh, the CIA idiots are perfectly capable of dealing with this. I'm trying to track the hackers just in case they're not at Mossad headquarters, but when I tried they put a virus on my computer. I've got the trace on a separate system, but I can't be two places at once." Abby said, annoyed.

"Ok. I'll get rid of the virus and you keep up the trace," McGee replied, hands already flying over the keyboard.

"Right," Abby pulled up the trace on her laptop and sipped her Caf-Pow! eagerly. "And when this fiasco is sorted out, I need your help with another small project."

"Oh?" McGee looked up for a moment.

"I need a Mossad-proof Kill-Orli-Elbaz computer game," was the innocent reply.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I'm back! Sorry about the long wait, but I had a huge speech that I spent most of he week writing (in fact I should be practicing it now... oh well) but I am here with more story. More Tiva goodness in this one, promise. On another note, the number of reviews for this story is decreasing, so if you're still reading, I would love if you would review to tell me how I'm doing. Enough of my blabbering, read on!**

**Disclaimer: If NCIS was mine, there would be Tiva all the time and more dead Rays.**

Ten minutes after arriving at work, both Tony and Ziva received texts directing them to the lab. Exchanging confused looks, the partners headed down to Abbyland- as Tony so eloquently put it.

"I wonder what this is about. Knowing Abby, we'll end up cleaning her lab." Tony laughed nervously.

"Abby is a good person," Ziva admonished. "She-" Ziva broke off as the elevator doors opened and revealed Abby Scuito, resident forensic scientist extraordinaire.

"Hey guys!" she exclaimed. Then she grabbed both their wrists and pulled them into her lab, and then into the ballistics lab. The door slid closed and Abby put her hands on her hips.

"You two are not leaving this room until you talk to each other," she declared firmly.

"Abby!" Tony and Ziva protested together.

"Nope." She stepped out of the ballistics lab and pressed a button on the remote in her hand to lock the door.

"This is ridiculous," Ziva growled. Tony nodded in agreement. Ziva sat down in Abby's chair and crossed her arms. Tony leaned against the wall, watching her. They stayed that way for the better part of an hour.

Then Tony, who had been dozing off, heard a small sniffling sound and looked up to see Ziva with her knees pulled up to her chest, a solitary tear on her face.

"Ziva, what's wrong?" Tony hurried over and put his hand on her shoulder. She shrugged him off and wiped her eyes.

"Zi, seriously, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned. "I can help." Ziva shook her head.

"That is the problem, Tony. You think that you can always be there, that that you can help me, but you cannot! I am all alone." The last words were said in a whisper. Ziva felt tears pooling in her eyes, but refused to let them flow.

"Zi, no you're not. You have Gibbs, Abby, Tim, Ducky, Jimmy, and… me. You have me."

"I do not have a family anymore," she whispered.

"Yes you do. You have a father, a sister, a brother, a grandfather, a cousin. And you have your partner, you have a friend." Tony took her hand in his.

"You are not alone. You will never be alone. We will always be here for you, and no one will ever tell you differently," Tony murmured. He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, to her cheek. Ziva reached a hand up and lightly brushed his cheek. The partners stared into each other's eyes for a millisecond before their lips touched.


End file.
